Lula and Flávio Bolsonaro held the final debate before the second round of Brazil's elections

Final debate before the second round

Brazilian President Luiz Inácio Lula da Silva and right-wing candidate, Senator Flávio Bolsonaro, held a final, more restrained debate on Friday, two days before the second round of elections, reports AFP. According to polls, a tie is expected in Sunday's voting between the ideologically opposed candidates after Bolsonaro — son of former far-right president Jair Bolsonaro — took the lead in the first round.

Exchange of accusations with a calmer tone

While the first debate five days ago was filled with insults and lacked concrete proposals, this time the candidates questioned each other on the economy, infrastructure, and regional development. Nevertheless, there were still sharp remarks: 80-year-old Lula questioned the experience of the 45-year-old senator, while Bolsonaro accused the president of leaving behind a 'ruined country'. Lula urged viewers to 'Google' his opponent's claims, to which Bolsonaro replied: 'Who is running Brazil — you or Google?' Bolsonaro also joked about Lula's lost finger in his youth, to which Lula responded: 'I will not allow a policeman to call me 'nine-fingered',' referring to his opponent's accusations of ties to paramilitary groups in Rio de Janeiro. Bolsonaro apologized but asked Lula to 'apologize to the Brazilian people suffering from insecurity'. Lula also criticized his opponent's plan to 'slash' public spending in the style of Argentine leader Javier Milei.

Candidates' positions and voter sentiments

Bolsonaro promised to tackle crime, create 500,000 additional prison places, and cut public spending. Minister of Social Communication Sidônio Palmeira stated before the debates that 'Lula wants to discuss proposals, unlike Bolsonaro, who prefers attacks and provocations'. Lula, a former union leader, positions himself as a defender of democracy and largely relies on opposition to the return of the Bolsonaro family to power: Jair Bolsonaro is serving a 27-year sentence for an attempted coup after losing to Lula in 2022. According to AFP, the election outcome will determine whether Latin America's largest country joins the regional rightward shift supported by US President Donald Trump or remains a left-wing stronghold.

Legal disputes and accusations against platforms

The campaign is accompanied by legal conflicts. This week, both candidates filed lawsuits seeking to disqualify their opponent due to abuses on social media. Lula's campaign accused Meta of 'interference' in favor of Flávio Bolsonaro through alleged 'algorithmic manipulation'. Meta rejected the accusations but acknowledged that some of Lula's campaign ads were mistakenly disabled due to technical glitches. On Thursday the electoral court gave Meta and X 24 hoursto explain the criteria for distributing political content and advertising, as well as the use of artificial intelligence. Lula's digital strategy advisor João Brant told AFP that the team is concerned about the 'obvious alignment between Meta and the US government'. Meanwhile, Bolsonaro's campaign on Friday accused Lula's team of 'using state resources and digital structures to interfere' in the elections.

What is at stake

According to a Datafolha institute poll published on Thursday, the candidates are tied — each with 50% of the vote, whereas two weeks ago Bolsonaro led by four points. The result of the second round will determine the course of Latin America's largest country, and for voters, the practical significance lies in the stated programs: Bolsonaro promises stricter crime fighting and spending cuts, while Lula pledges to maintain the current course. So far, according to voter accounts cited by AFP, the debates have confused voters more than clarified the differences between the candidates.